Chapter 306: The Request
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 306: The Request
Even though Lutia had left, I couldn’t let my guard down completely. In the end, Silvia and I just talked for a bit before falling asleep.
Well, as it turned out, Lutia never did come back.
And then, the next morning.
Excited at the thought of finally heading back, I was hastily packing up my tent when Lutia approached me.
“Hey. There’s something I want to ask you.”
“Ye-Yes?! What is it?!”
“Hehe. No need to be so tense. I’m not going to eat you. I was just a little curious, why are you so against sleeping with me? Am I not your type?”
Lutia’s expression was one of genuine curiosity; there wasn’t a hint of self-pity or intimidation to be found.
Well, of course. How could anyone with a face like that lack confidence?
“Ah, no. It’s just that, believe it or not, I’m a man of pure love. I don’t want to betray my girls.”
It was a little embarrassing to say something like that about myself, but I said it with conviction.
Judging by her question, this woman might actually be someone I can reason with, unlike that succubus princess.
“Hmmm. Is that so? Then it’s not that you dislike my type?”
“O-Of course not. I definitely don’t dislike you. Ah, but that doesn’t mean you can come visit me at night…”
“Hehe. Look at you, all flustered. You really are cute.”
Lutia chuckled and walked back toward her tent.
What was that reaction all about?
So, does that mean she won’t try to jump me anymore, or is she going to wait and see how long my “pure love” lasts?
I couldn’t help but tilt my head in confusion.
The journey back was far less tense than the way here.
Being able to trigger my skill effects on monsters at the perfect moment gave me a sense of stability, and above all, my massively increased defense allowed me to relax.
Of course, there were still some monsters that launched magic attacks from time to time, but we dealt with those by having only the frontline members engage, ensuring the aggro never shifted to the back.
Not only did this completely prevent the rear guard from drawing aggro, but even if a monster, hit by my skill, launched a final desperate magic attack our way, the twin mages who weren’t participating in the battle would simply nullify it with their own magic.
And so, I walked through the 5th floor without a care in the world, as if I were on a stroll.
Come to think of it, I originally came here to observe how high-level adventurers fight, but unless they’re up against a strong monster of a Transcendent Species or higher, these guys just fight recklessly.
I guess that’s only possible because they have the stats to back it up.
Still, I did get to see some real coordination when they fought Transcendent Species, which was educational. And more than anything, just being able to see the combat patterns of the 5th-layer monsters firsthand made the trip worthwhile.
In any case, with plenty of time on my hands, I started messing with the others around me.
“Hey. Alicia. Thanks for last night. But what was that thing you said when you dragged Lutia out? What did you say to make her leave so obediently?”
“You—You don’t need to know, you punk!”
“What was it? Something dirty? Don’t tell me, since you can’t get a man, you’re with a woman…”
“You bastard, do you really want to die?”
“Seeing you get this angry makes me think it’s true.”
“This little shit, even after I helped you…!”
“Sorry, sorry. Right, you did help me. As a reward, I’ll help you improve your femininity again today…”
“Hah.”
…Huh? What’s with that smile?
I expected Alicia to get angry again, but for some reason, she was looking at me with a confident smirk.
“Don’t think that the me of today is the same as the me of yesterday.”
With those words, Alicia suddenly pulled down only the breastplate of her armor.
Of course, she was wearing clothes underneath, so her chest wasn’t exposed, but I have to admit, it looked a little sexy.
When every other part of her body is covered in hard steel, revealing just her chest like that really makes it stand out.
Plus, since she was quite large, her breasts were emphasized to the point where they looked like they would burst through the cloth.
After exposing her chest, Alicia then removed the breastplate of my armor.
Then, she wrapped her arms around my neck and pulled me forcefully toward her.
We were both wearing cloth under our armor, but I could clearly feel Alicia’s soft breasts pressing against my chest, their shape changing from the pressure.
On top of that, Alicia moved her upper body as if to rub her chest against mine and brought her lips to my ear.
“Am I still not feminine enough for you?”
Alicia whispered, a slightly fierce but alluring smile on her face. Her tone was different from usual, somehow sexier.
She wasn’t bad-looking by any means—hell, to be blunt, she was gorgeous—so I got incredibly turned on.
Honestly, it was enough to get me hard.
Pressed this close, she’d probably feel it against her leg if I got a full erection.
After all, the crotch of my leather armor was completely destroyed from yesterday’s incident.
However, thanks to her tone, which reminded me of a certain someone, I was able to come to my senses.
I see. So that’s how you want to play it. But I won’t lose!
If I admit defeat here, it’s over! I won’t be able to tease Alicia anymore!
This is one of the few joys I have while stuck in this dungeon!
I circulated my mana in the opposite way I would when using Revived Pride, forcing myself to go soft before I could get fully hard.
Then, I steadied my breathing as discreetly as possible and looked Alicia straight in the eye.
“Did Lutia teach you that?”
“Wha-What are you talking about…!”
“What do you mean, what am I talking about? I can tell you learned it from Lutia just by your tone. Did she teach you some pillow talk while you two were sleeping together last night… Gack!”
“How many times do I have to tell you we didn’t sleep together, you bastard!”
“Kuh! Ugh! D-Do you have to punch me in my exposed stomach…?”
That’s the spot where the Garuda pierced me, so I don’t even have armor there.
If my defense wasn’t so high, I would’ve been seriously injured.
“Hah… Hoo… A-Anyway! You’re going about this the wrong way. It’s not sexy at all.”
“Don’t give me that crap, you bastard. You had a dazed look on your face! And your thing was… huh? It’s not hard?”
Alicia grabbed my crotch and seemed genuinely bewildered.
“I told you, didn’t I? The gap is what’s important. Since you don’t seem like the type at all, you need to practice acting feminine.”
To be honest, a sexy attitude would most likely work well for Alicia. Her looks suit it, and more importantly, it would be impossible for her to act feminine even if she died and came back to life.
But I said what I said anyway.
Why? Because it’s more fun this way!
If she practiced being seductive, she’d probably master it quickly, and then it wouldn’t be fun anymore.
If it weren’t for that tone of voice imitating Lutia just now, her move would have worked on me perfectly.
“Now, don’t try to avoid it. Shall we practice your feminine behavior again today?”
We still have a few days left before we go back; I can’t give up on messing with her already.
“Then shall I demonstrate for you again?”
Just then, Matilda jumped in.
“N-No. Matilda, you don’t have to push yourself…”
“Oh my? Your reaction isn’t as harsh today. Could it be that you were actually looking forward to it a little?”
Damn it! That’s not it! It’s just that I’ve realized your curse doesn’t work on me anymore, so it’s become harder to be so harsh to you!
But if I act lukewarm like this, she might find out.
I steeled myself and decided to act cruel.
“N-No, I wasn’t?! What do you mean, ‘you too’?! Were you looking forward to it?!”
“O-Of course not… It was just a slip of the tongue!”
“Good! Then I don’t need a demonstration!”
“Hmph! I wouldn’t do it now even if you begged me!”
I’m not going to ask you for anything anymore, either.
I thought it would be easier to deal with her now that I was immune to her curse, but it’s actually gotten more difficult.
I still have to be harsh to her, but since I don’t mean it, I end up feeling guilty.
Maybe it’s best not to talk to her at all.
Anyway, after a few more days of marching and trading jokes like that, we finally made it back to the teleportation magic circle on the 5th floor.
Lutia seemed to have understood what I said about being a man of pure love who didn’t want to sleep with other women, as she didn’t try to jump me again after that.
A lot of things happened, but looking back on it all, it ended up being a good memory.
I leveled up quite a bit, got a good skill, and successfully completed the mission.
Yep. No complaints.
“Well, this is it. Good work.”
“No, all I did was follow you around and use my skills a few times. You all did the hard work.”
I firmly shook the hand Miriel offered me.
“So, what about the payment? Should we handle everything on our end and send half to your clan house?”
“No. I’d prefer to receive our half in physical goods, if possible. Ah, it’s not that I don’t trust you. I just want to use the materials to upgrade our equipment rather than sell them.”
“I see. In that case, why don’t you stop by our clan house before you head back? It’s a bit cramped here to be dividing up items.”
Right. I’d rather go straight home and see my girls’ faces, but I can wait a little longer.
It’s not like they’re going to run away if I’m a little late.
We teleported up to the Guild, cashed in the magic stones, and I received my half of the payment.
Then, we arrived at the garden of the Arachne Clan House and began to take out all the items we had obtained during the mission.
Other members of the Arachne clan, apparently curious, began to gather in small groups where we were.
First, we divided the items into two categories: penises and non-penises. The Arachne Clan would take all the penises.
The remaining items would be split in half between our clan and theirs.
Each time I took out a Transcendent Species’ penis, the atmosphere among the onlookers grew more and more excited. Why?!
And when I finally took out the Transcendent Wyvern’s penis, shrill screams erupted from the crowd.
“Kyaaaa! What is that! Is that a penis?!”
Is it just my imagination, or do those screams sound kind of happy?
As I thought, every member of this clan is a little weird.
“Hah. I feel like my eyeballs are rotting.”
Just looking at the pile of penises was agonizing.
“It’s as big as I remember. Does this mean I’ll have to carry it around myself from now on? I’ll have to get a large spatial pouch.”
“Well, since it’s so big, it won’t be easy to find a hole it’ll fit into, right? With the small ones, it’s a pain just finding the right hole.”
“Indeed. I suppose you’re right.”
Miriel seemed to find my words amusing and replied with a slight smile.
I wasn’t trying to be funny, though.
“Alright, let’s divide the rest of the items. I’ll sort them.”
Miriel said as she sat down and deftly began sorting the items by type with her own hands.
Usually, leaders of huge clans like this have an image of just standing in the back with their hands clasped behind them, but come to think of it, she does everything herself. Not that I’m one to talk.
“Here you go. Once again, thank you for all your hard work.”
“Uh, yeah. You too. Let’s help each other out again if the need arises.”
After collecting the items Miriel had sorted, I finally prepared to head back to the mansion.
“Wait a minute!”
Just as I was about to leave, Alicia stopped me.
Ah, right. I had something to say to her, too. I almost forgot.
“What is it?”
“What are you guys going to do now? Are you planning to explore the middle of the 3rd floor, beyond the ant nest?”
“Huh? Yeah, we are. Why?”
“No! It’s nothing! Just curious!”
What a strange girl. Well, it doesn’t matter, since I had something to say to her anyway.
“More importantly, Alicia. I have something to tell you.”
“Wha-What?! What is it?!”
Alicia suddenly tensed up and shouted.
Don’t be like that. You’re making me nervous, too.
“Well, you see. I haven’t been able to say this until now. But you know that time you pushed your chest out and tried to appeal to me all sexy-like? To be honest, that was incredibly sexy. So…”
“Uh, uh-huh…”
For some reason, Alicia seemed to be getting more and more nervous.
Watching her, I subtly took a step back with one leg.
“I really think the sexy look suits you. It would be perfect if it weren’t for that clumsy imitation of Lutia’s tone. So if there’s a guy you like, go for it with that approach. The feminine act just doesn’t work for you. I was just lying because it was fun to mess with you! See ya!”
I finished my sentence in a rush, quickly turned around, and fled the Arachne Clan House.
Teasing is one thing, but I still give proper advice in the end. Aren’t I a nice guy?
Even I would feel bad if she kept trying to appeal to a guy she likes with a feminine act and ended up failing because of me. I’m not such a piece of trash that I’d enjoy watching that happen.
“You… you… you son of a biiiiiitch!”
Alicia, who hadn’t understood what I said for a moment, belatedly let out a roar and chased after me, but I managed to escape by a hair’s breadth.
My preemptive escape while she was frozen, combined with the considerable agility boost I’d gotten from my Assassin level-ups, proved to be effective.
“Hahaha! Catch me if you…!”
“S-Sir Guwon!”
“Why did you suddenly run off alone?!”
But there was a variable I hadn’t calculated.
“Keep running, why don’t you?”
Damn it! Isn’t taking hostages a dirty trick?!
“Um… about that… I-I’m sorry.”
“Are those your last words?! Then die!”